Fiore's cheeks had never been as red as they were now, as if a fire was burning within them that couldn't be extinguished. Part of this was certainly because Shinji had seen her in such an embarrassing state, but more so because of what Celenike had said.
After the Astolfo Judgnt Assembly and the Black Lancer Strategy eting ended, Shinji escorted Fiore back to her room before heading off to find Astolfo to check on Sieg's situation. Since he had chosen to help, he couldn't abandon it halfway.
Fiore didn't think much of it. Chiron, Shinji, and Astolfo had always had a good relationship. With Astolfo facing a death sentence, Chiron and Shinji were willing to fight to protect him. Visiting him in prison wasn't a big deal, and Chiron would probably be there soon as well.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, Caules ran into her room saying that Chiron had gone to visit Astolfo. He also ntioned that Assassin had gone too and suggested that they visit as well since they had nothing else to do.
Seeing her brother's expression, Fiore knew Caules probably wasn't going just to visit. He was likely up to sothing. Directly stopping him wouldn't necessarily work; even if he agreed, he might sneak off later. It was better to go with him and be able to handle any situation that arose.
With this in mind, Fiore agreed to go with her brother.
What would they see? What would Archer, Assassin, and Rider talk about?
How would they see? By spying, or more accurately, by eavesdropping.
The essence of the Forvedge family's magecraft was the attachnt and manipulation of spirits. Though this magecraft wasn't highly combative, it was excellent in many areas, such as spying and eavesdropping.
Thus, Fiore and Caules hid in the hallway leading to the dungeon, using pre-prepared beast spirits to spy and eavesdrop.
Initially, Fiore was against this, but seeing the artificial guards driven away from the dungeon entrance, her curiosity got the better of her. Additionally, the dungeon had a pre-set bounded field that suppressed Servant's senses, so Fiore didn't stop her brother.
Then, the siblings heard Celenike's explosive statent.
The Forvedge siblings were young. While Western education systems in such matters were quite comprehensive, understanding knowledge wasn't the sa as having experience. They had no practical experience in this area, let alone any real-world application. Compared to the experienced Celenike, they were absolute novices.
A few casual words from Celenike left the two novices red-faced and flustered.
When the experienced driver started showing off her skills, the two novices completely broke down. Caules even banged his head against the wall, and Fiore's wheelchair accidentally hit the floor tiles.
Despite the complex bounded field in the dungeon, there wasn't one for soundproofing. Thus, the teasing Celenike, the teased Shinji, and the observing Astolfo all noticed the eavesdroppers.
Realizing they had been spotted, the two hurriedly fled back to their rooms without exchanging a word.
With an inherently strong psychological constitution and not being the direct target of the teasing, Caules cald down quickly after so fresh air.
Fiore, however, was not as composed. Her mind was filled with the "impure" words she had heard, making her beautiful face alternately flush red and pale.
She tried to suppress those thoughts but found it impossible. In the end, she resorted to using water to calm herself down.
With the help of the bathtub and bubbles, Fiore finally washed away the chaos in her mind and prepared to lie down and rest for a while. At this point, she had completely forgotten about taking her dicine, and the usually persistent pain from her magic circuits wasn't bothering her. Perhaps it was still there, but she was too distracted to feel it.
Coming out of the bathroom, Fiore felt extrely tired, more so than after a full day of magical experints in the workshop. Just as she was about to rest, she heard Shinji's voice.
All her previous efforts were wasted. The suppressed chaotic thoughts resurfaced like wild grass growing in the spring breeze.
The pure-hearted girl was a bundle of nerves. She answered in a panic while instinctively tossing and turning on the bed. As a result, she accidentally fell off and hit her head on the floor.
Struggling to lift her head, she saw Shinji entering through the door.
For a mont, a flood of emotions—sha, embarrassnt, grievance, panic—overwheld her. She didn't even know how she managed to get Shinji out of the room. It wasn't until the door closed and she could no longer see the man who had unsettled her mind that she gradually regained so control over her thoughts, though only a little.
Of course, the person outside wasn't faring much better. Two normally amicable people had stumbled through an awkward conversation, the kind of stilted, uncomfortable exchange known as "cringe talk."
It wasn't until she heard the door across the hall close with a clear sound that Fiore snapped out of her daze.
"What on earth did I just do—"
Recalling everything that had just transpired, the girl nearly fainted.
"He... he won't hate , will he?"
She felt as if all her strength had drained from her body, collapsing onto the bed like a deflated balloon.
"Ugh, what should I do..."
For the rest of the night, Fiore tossed and turned, trapped in a fog of half-dreams and restless thoughts, with Shinji's face appearing in every fleeting vision.
◇◇◇
Fiore wasn't the only one struggling to sleep that night.
Gordes was also tossing and turning, unable to find rest.
The events of the night had deeply shaken him.
Siegfried's helplessness against Achilles and his absurd behavior.
The overwhelming prowess of Black Assassin and Fiore's unwavering trust.
The contrast was stark.
The subsequent eting of the kings made Gordes feel that sense of absolute trust even more.
To save Astolfo, Chiron and Black Assassin had been willing to confront Vlad III. To Gordes, this was unimaginable. Astolfo's own Master had stood by without objection—why were these two "outsiders" interfering? Why didn't the Forvedge siblings try to stop them?
Gordes still rembered Fiore and Caules' expressions. Though they were sowhat surprised and tense, they showed no signs of wavering.
At that mont, he had thought, "Assassin may not be as strong as Siegfried, yet he can still shine when facing top-tier Servants like Karna and Achilles. In contrast, despite having the great hero Siegfried, I have yet to achieve any notable results."
If this continued, it wouldn't be Siegfried's incompetence but his own.
Perhaps, as that annoying Assassin had suggested, the relationship between Master and Servant was crucial. Yet he had never tried to understand—no, he had never even thought about understanding his Servant.
No matter what, he needed to have a proper conversation with Siegfried, at least to understand his wishes.
With this in mind, Gordes got up from the bed and took out a bottle of red wine and two goblets.
"Saber, materialize."
The knight from the Netherlands appeared, his imposing figure still as commanding as ever, always present.
Gordes pointed to the adjacent sofa and handed over a glass of wine.
"How about a drink? I'd like to have a good talk with you."
...
That night, many couldn't sleep.
PS: Celenike's assist was spot-on, proving she's the only Master who truly understands how to use her Servant and Command Spells.
PS2: It looks like Gordes is about to rise. In Higashide's novel, I've always thought Gordes was the best-developed character, perfectly embodying the concept of growth from initial dislike to eventual transformation.
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